Landing Gear for Fishing KAYAKS - Build Your Own - Construction and Installation Video

Do it yourself Kayak Landing Gear Wheel System - Deploy and retract without having to tip the kayak over on side. Includes instruction on building and assembly using parts available from hardware store.

[@Capnobot]

Awesome engineering! I'm definitely gonna mod my kayak with this design!

[@joelling9958]

Pure genius ! You sir are a true free thinker .

[@MastersMagazine]

Thank you Sir, best compliment I ever had. CHEERS!

[@keithryant5779]

I'm definitely doing this and will save me hundreds of $$$. Thanks for the detailed video!

[@thiodorchalkias8906]

Nice structure!!! When I buy my own kayak I have in mind to do something similar but using stainless steel 316. You see the galvanized steel if filed or drilled loose the galvanization and then start the rust specially if you use the kayak in sea water!!! Many thanks for sharing!!! Have a good time every time!!!!! Best regards from Hellas (Greece)

[@MastersMagazine]

Hello Thiodor, happy to hear you are from Greece. I am originally from Serbia. I had fun building the landing gear, stainless is the way to go. Mine was more of a trial and error so I didn't want to invest in SS. What I liked about it was when I submerge the wheels just a bit under the water level it stabilized the kayak and it did not create much of a drag when peddling.

[@crawford323]

I do not see how four screws anchored in plastic is going to overcome the long moment arm forces on anything but a smooth surface. I would worry about the durability of the mounts. If observed carefully the gear leg moved considerably from the vertical just in the area where it was demonstrated when pushed aft. A secondary mount with a removable strut brace on each wheel could go a long way in meditating such rotational stresses. I could be very wrong.

[@TCSkiFilms]

Dito.

[@j.lawsonoutdoors5659]

He added a backing plate BUT I still don’t think it’s sufficient.

[@thiodorchalkias8906]

Hi again!!! I bought my own kayak!!! I have to elevated at 4th floor so I made a hand operating crane!!!! In order to avoid the slippering because the torgue I'll use rectangular aluminum heavy duty hollow pipe!!!

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi, WOW! 4 floors. That is impressive. I imagine that you are using some kind of belts that go under the kayak, like lifting big boats with a crane. I am not an engineer but lifting the kayak from the top with any mounting will not be a good thing because the plastic will weaken during temperature change. Sorry just thinking out loud.

[@thiodorchalkias8906]

@@MastersMagazine the kayak shall have two hanging points (front and back) via the handles and will came up with an angle of 45 deg. about.... For the lifting shall take place a rope 8 mm OD and some pulleys.... The weight of the vessel is 40 kilos...

[@pb-bx1ll]

Great video, thank you

[@ThomasShue]

90% fantastic design. I’ll be making a 2.0 version with a better release mechanism

[@MateotheGreat]

What's your plan

[@angelawilliams1316]

Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge!

[@trinacria1956]

Very 😎! Thank you. I go in saltwater, guess could do all aluminum. Have Hobie-outback so thinking if can use the scupper holes so make a frame: poles in scuppers attached 90 ° to 2 parallel poles so looks like an "H" or actually "#"shape sandwiching the kayak body so no stress point! As my father would say: 🤔 " always thinking " (which usually ended in disaster or peril !)😬

[@MastersMagazine]

I like it, might want to look into Stainless Steel tubing for the salt water. I would build a template/working model out of PVC then see how it fits.

[@budojin1]

Hey brother, this is awesome ! I am thinking about getting a fishing kayak and modding it like this for my house on the Panhandle in Florida ! OSS !

[@MastersMagazine]

That would be fun, I went out locally a few times, had fun and then decided to get 14 ft aluminum boat. I had a lot of fun building the undercarriage, a labor of love.

[@jerryag19451]

love this build it solves my problem of not wanting to buy a trailer. could you please include names and part id numbers for all the parts including the wheels and a little more detail on the black stoppers you added at the end. I'm build it this weekend

[@davidshipman2623]

I was thinking the same. Having a link to the parts especially the wheels. I did see the name of the pipe fitting they are on Amazon.

[@TCSkiFilms]

So very fantastic! With those wheels there is an added benefit; instead of Turning the wheels in to sit on top of the kayak you leave the wheels turned out and see if they offer some stability with the wheels acting as 'out riggers'. Did you say you had a parts list that you can share?

[@MastersMagazine]

Thanks for the comment, yes I did have the wheels on the side using them as flotation assist and it did help. I am a big guy 280lbs so any stabilizing assistance is welcome HAHAHA! The part list is in the video at the beginning. Honestly, I slap the whole thing together in a few days but if someone has time they can engineer the concept much better with better materials. I used simple pins to secure the positions but there are much better devices that will snap in place easier.

[@richardterhaar4747]

Nice build!

[@vernonsimmons4578]

Excellent work 😊

[@MastersMagazine]

Thank you Vernon, regards.

[@badabling2063]

Should work very nicely for freshwater but the galvanized steel will likely rust very fast in saltwater.

[@tylerschrader68]

That was awesome thank you for the video sir!

[@lakiraly]

Well thought out and very clever. Thanks for posting :-)

[@WarrenPenner]

Good stuff! Love this!

[@joemartin6439]

You must be a metal worker . Wow great video. A bit hard to figure out

[@danareed1656]

wonderful video!

[@cesar68033]

Great job

[@smileycamel5635]

Nice job.

[@aussiebornandbred]

Good job, 👍👍much cheaper than the boonedox gear and does the same job, thanks

[@chrismcg7856]

Looks good and I'm liking this a lot, but it'd be good to see it in action. I mean how does it work without the buckets? Is it easy to set the wheels down when the buckets aren't there? I guess you could set them up before the kayak leaves the truck and then raise them when in the water. I feel there should be more points to lock the wheels in place rather than just a couple of pins.

[@Capnobot]

I rigged a dolly up to my 14ft jon boat with just two pins and dolly the whole thing with a 5.5 outboard motor on it. Trust me, if your base construction is sturdy then those pins will easily hold. Chances are good the base will flop before those pins break.

[@hermanjlyons]

Nice job. Did you ever consider putting the Plastic on the underside?

[@MastersMagazine]

I did but the kayak wobbles and if loaded it's just to heavy to pull. I like to load it up and take just one trip.

[@seancochran8522]

I see you put this video on here a while ago. I was curious if you have any signs of cracking in the plastic around the mounts?

[@tedberrios5805]

Perfecto

[@Jcf2301]

How has it held up through the years?

[@AWB203]

To put the tires down and lock them in place you have them on buckets so it's nice and easy. But it looks like you would need someone to lift up the Kayak for you to put them down or maybe do it while its still in the water? I skimmed through the video so sorry if he explained this.

[@MastersMagazine]

Hello, thanks for the comment. You are correct. When I store the kayak I always placed the buckets underneath for long term storage, I did not like leaving it on wheels for a long time. When going out I towed the kayak in the bed of my truck, so I would pull it half way out and then lower the wheels. When I was loading it on the truck I placed the kayak half way on the bed and then lift the wheels.

[@zeroh_chill2966]

Was thinking the same thing but he mentioned it already. Otherwise you’d need to add a jack to your setup as well lol .. I may try this but with some modifications for lifting/lowering without a truck/water assist.

[@pork_chop13]

So I have a native titan 13.5 and it is heavy. I have a rear native landing gear setup. I am looking to doing something like yours. However my track on the front that I was planning on use goes side to side. I would need a steel structural support to go the same way but it does not. What could I use instead any ideas? Thanks

[@Kabs9780]

I'm trying the same build 3/4 to 1/2 but the od of the 1/2 galvanized pipe is 7/8 at lowes. Bore on all the wheels are 7/8. Any help?

[@MrNixxFishing]

I just got a oldtown pdl kayak and am interested in building something similar for mine. Do you know if drilling the holes into the kayak to mount something like this would void the warranty?

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi MrNixx, I believe it would void the warranty. Regards, Val

[@scottd8555]

Did you happen to get a weight of the whole apparatus?

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi Scott, I believe it was under 20 lbs maybe less. The only thing that had weight was the metal bars.

[@farmerjoebrown2189]

I would think the cutting board would go inside to provide more support over lrger area. This way the metal is still pulling on the same spot. Good video tho

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi Joe, thanks for the comment. Yes there are two identical pieces of cutting board per main bracket. One goes under (inside the kayak) and the other on top. I agree the underneath support should be larger.

[@zeroh_chill2966]

You missed it then cause he cuts 4 pieces. Two on top, two inside.

[@oilheating214]

Can you please make a parts list and we’re to buy the parts

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi, thanks for the comment. The part list is in the video at 1 minute 37 seconds. I purchased all of the material at the Lowe's hardware store. I believe that Home Depot has the same thing. They have them at online as well. Best wishes, Val

[@HVVYMETAL]

Total build cost?

[@thomasjester6975]

That would seem difficult to put the wheels down If you're fishing by yourself. Would have to be able to lift the rear of the kayak and while still holding it be able to put the pins back in place.

[@MastersMagazine]

On the left side there is an extended handle that you use to leverage the wheels as you lower and raise the wheels. It works ok but as you say it is a bit difficult to do it in the water. If I were to build from scratch I would make a half circle aluminum pin snap in handle (spring loaded).

[@zeroh_chill2966]

I was thinking about this exact thing BUT.. Just like other landing gear, you only hassle with it right at the water line. Drop/remove the gear in shallow water in other words. Not like you’ll be twisting behind you to drop landing gear in 50’ waters right? Just hop out when you reach the shore and get everything into position.

[@wingnutbert9685]

Have you tried pulling it across rougher ground yet? I hope not, but I think you're gonna have a catastrophic failure. Hope not. But there's a lot off flex on those long unsupported levers(legs).

[@MastersMagazine]

Pulled it over grass, dirt, sand and lunching cement ramps. So far no issues. Discovered that it really stabilizes the kayak when submerged a foot below the water line. I'm just having fun experimenting.

[@wingnutbert9685]

@@MastersMagazine Awesome! Those fittings are great. I've got one out of PVC that flips over and under and the yak sits on the axle w/ a noodle. It's a bit of an experiment based on what others have posted on YT. Once the bugs are worked out, I'll likely weld one up out of .063 Tube and powder coat it. But I'll keep the cut PVC Tee's that mount it to the yak rails and act as the hinge point. The have about an 1" slot cut out of the top so the frame can just pop on and off but hold tight when clipped in. Thanks for posting yours. Good to see what guys come up with. :)

[@MastersMagazine]

@@wingnutbert9685 Thank you, I think I have seen have seen yours. Brilliant concept. Best regards.

[@philod902]

I have the commercial Landing Gear setup on my. Native PDL. I want to make a similar setup for my smaller sit inside. I like your version, but I noticed the flex as well. Do you know where it originates? I’m afraid that the long term effect will eventually cause a failure of the kayak body. Spreading the strain over the width of the kayak using a plate above and a plate below might help.

[@MastersMagazine]

@@philod902 I think that the inside/underneath additional support is a must on any kayak that you want to install any kind of landing Gear. It would be very easy for the manufacturers to simply build a top support beams on both sides during their process. Hell they make enough money on molded plastic. Makes me want to go into kayak business.

[@Kabs9780]

Are your pipe measurements 1/2 and 3/4 for od ?

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi Jeremy, sorry for the delayed response. Since the time I made the video I sold my kayak and I don't remember. Wish I had it so that I can measure. As far as I remember I used 3/4 and 1/2. The 1/2 could have been just water pipe galvanized. Sorry man wish I could help. Regards, Val

[@edcygan]

It looked great until the weight of the kayak was set on the wheels. Once the kayak has all the fishing gear loaded it can get pretty heavy. I will stick with my C-Tug.

[@pitchkapizda8355]

Which I knew how to do that to my pro Angler

[@rogue9612]

👍

[@kobe34081]

I'll just spend the $280 on the Native landing gear system and use the rest of my time fishing. Just saying

[@anthonysimmons8976]

Wanna do this for my PDL 120?

[@MastersMagazine]

Hi Anthony, it would be much the same. You would just need to make your underneath mount support pattern to fit the design of the PDL-120. If you really want to make it nice use Stainless Steel 3/4 pipe and fittings. One thing to note is that I did end up using T's instead of 90 degree elbows. Gives you much more stability.

[@MrCarmelo1959]

Nice but to many pins to deal with when your in the water sorry good idea tho

[@amorton94]

You don't mess with it when you're in the water though...

[@zeroh_chill2966]

Your comment doesn’t make any sense. Not like you’re raising or lowering the gear from the seat in 50’ water. You do it at the shore line. He didn’t need to make a handle for it really. He’s still going to be getting out and rotating that other wheel. Pins are perfect with this set up.

[@osteel6198]

To much added weight - cuts down gear you can haul.

[@zeroh_chill2966]

Back in my car building days people always said the same thing about saving weight for racing. My answer always was, how bout you just don’t be fat and then the extra weight won’t matter lol

[@oilheating214]

Should make and sell

[@briarfox637]

cant hide money.

[@MastersMagazine]

64 years old, 2 jobs all my life & still working everyday including weekends. Renting part of the warehouse.... soo YAP! "CAN'T hide money." KMA :)

[@briarfox637]

@@MastersMagazine lol I hear ya.